Lightning McQueen & Sally

Thanks to Crew Chief Auntie Lizzie, a Pit Crew consisting of Grammy and Mommy and a Maintenance Crew of Pop Pop and Daddy, we have Lightning McQueen and Sally for Halloween!!

Hmmm...what would it be like to have 5 kids?!

Well, we got a taste of it this weekend! We had Bethany & Quenton's kids for the weekend and it was really a lot of fun! Of course, it would be much harder to do ALL the time, not just for a weekend. Their kids are so good and get along so well with our kids that it really was not hard - it just takes a long time to do things for 5 kids!!! Jon was at work on Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and so getting lunch ready for 5 hungry kids was quite the task!!









Briar is at such a fun age and Jon and I both really enjoyed having a baby around again! On Saturday morning when I was showering and getting ready, Jon was reading books to Briar on our bed and I walked in and saw the way he was looking at her and I said, "Oh no honey, do you want another baby girl now?" and he said, "Um, yeah, how can you not? Look at her!" Ahhh, she is such a sweetie pie!

11 Years!

It's hard to believe that 11 years have already passed since Jon and I got married! This year we got to take some time to just be alone and reflect on the last 11 years and talk about our hopes/plans/dreams for the next 11+. I've posted some pics here of us enjoying each other without kids - it's good to remind yourself once in awhile that you really like this person you have kids with! :-)

Second Generation Friendship!

This is a picture of Sophia & Eden. Eden is the daughter of my best friend Bethany. Bethany and I met when I was 11 and she was 13 and became inseparable (at least until we met our husbands!). We roomed together in college, lived together post-college and were the maid/matron of honor in each other's weddings. Our husbands became very good friends in college and it's just one of those very special friendships for life. For the first 8 years after we both got married (in '96) we lived far apart, but then by a twist of fate, luck, providence, whatever you want to call it, Bethany, Quenton and family moved here 3 years ago and live 1 hour away from us. When they moved here, we decided it probably would not be permanent since all of their family is in the Midwest and so we have tried to enjoy every minute we can with them. We have definitely built a lot of special memories over these last 3 years, and hope to build many more for as long as we're blessed to have them nearby. It has been such a delight for me to see our kids become friends! They truly love each other and have built such a foundation of friendship that I hope lasts a lifetime for them too. B&Q took our kids for us overnight this past weekend so we could have some alone time for our anniversary (next post) and it was just so great to know that our kids are so comfortable with them, it was like they were at their second home.

So, back to the picture of Sophia & Eden - we've always thought they look like they could be sisters - which is funny because Bethany & I don't look anything alike! But we love it that they do. :-)

Our Baby Girl Goes to School (slide show)

I just learned how to make a slide show so I thought I'd add these pics.

Fall - - My Favorite Season

Serious Turkey! Sophia, 7 months.

The Big Apple & The Statue of Liberty - Halloween '06

Dora & Boots - Halloween '05

Ah, there is so much to love about fall! I have always loved this season. Jon and I got married in October and we had the most perfect weather on our wedding day and usually have beautiful weather to celebrate our anniversary. I love buying pumpkins and mums and getting out all of the fall decor (seeing as brown is my all-time favorite color, my house looks best in the fall). I love food associated with the fall - anything pumpkin, apples, soups, cider etc.

I love Halloween now that I have kids - it's all about the costumes, not the candy! Thanks to Auntie Lizzie, my kids have had some pretty cool costumes (see pics!).

I love Thanksgiving! I'm starting to think it is my favorite holiday because there is not the stress and craziness like there is at Christmas. Last year I went shopping on Black Friday for the first time and I think that will be a tradition (how about it Lizzie?!). This year I am taking the entire week of Thanksgiving off because Jon has that week off and it will be a nice time for us to reconnect after a busy football season ends.

The beautiful weather today just made me want to share all the reasons I love this time of year. I am so glad to live in a state that truly has 4 seasons (although I could live with a shorter winter!)

Our Baby Girl Goes to School

It does not seem possible that Sophia is ready to be in full-day kindergarten 5 days a week! Where did the past 5 1/2 years go?! I was telling her how mommy & daddy are having a hard time getting used to having her gone all day and she just looked at me thoughtfully and said, "Sorry, but I still want to go to school!" We are so proud of her and are excited for her to have this new experience. Here is a pic from her first day.

Joining the blog world!

I've been wanting to do this for some time and am finally getting around to it - hopefully I'll keep up with updating it! I will even try to convince Jon to post once in awhile too! :-)